Archived Comments for:
The Transcription Factor Encyclopedia

Wikipedia or database?

Peter Uetz, Virginia Commonwealth University

25 September 2012

Just a spontaneous thought: I wonder whether this project could or should be split up into a Wikipedia part (with all its advantages and disadvantages, but probably more advantages) and a database part. Wikipedia could fulfil the encyclopedic goal with images and human-readable text, essentially like mini-reviews. Everything else could go into various databases such as Uniprot, Intact, GEO etc. in order to provide a searchable dataset with links to all kinds of additional sources (PDB, PubMed etc.).

Maybe more functionality is coming, but right now the search function seems to be quite limited (e.g. no search for tissue-specific transcription factors).

An overview article of all TFs would be nice too (similar to Vaquerizas et al. 2009, Nat Rev Genet 10: 253), especially if it were kept up-to-date. On the other hand, printed peer-reviewed mini-reviews are nice, but they are out of days after a few years and then need to be rewritten. Why not just keep your database up to date, or make it more widely available through Wikipedia?